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Troubleshoot
system turning off abruptly

There can be numerous possible causes of this issue. Some systems
have LED lights and/or beep codes to give you indication of what the
problem is. Consult your manual for information on them.
Be a good idea to make sure your files are
backed up. Improper shutdowns and reboots can harm your files.

Boot to the
BIOS
and see if the system reboots while it is in the
BIOS.
(You may have to leave it in there for the
amount of time it takes for the issue to happen. i.e. it takes 4
hours for it to shut off, then leave the system in BIOS for 6
hours) (If it reboots or shuts off
while in the BIOS,
then it is definitely a hardware issue and not a software issue)

The bios may have a feature that allows you to boot to a USB
device. If this is turned on and you do not have a bootable USB
device connected, the system will appear to be hanging on boot
up. The system is trying to boot to the USB device but since the
USB device is not bootable, it will hang there. It will
eventually time out and continue to boot to windows. If you do
not have a bootable USB device, go into the BIOS and disable
this feature. The location is different depending on the bios.
Some have it under Integrated devices under USB Emulation. You
set the emulation to no boot. See the manual of your system for
the specific information on your bios.
Click here for more information.

If you can get into safe mode, it may be software. You may
want to try the
Software
Troubleshooter before going any farther on this page. If the
software troubleshooter doesn't help or you can't get to safe
mode, continue the steps on this page.

Run diagnostics on your
hard drive. (See the manufacturer of
your hard drive for the utility)

This could be a software issue or a hardware issue. You can
try the
software troubleshooter to see if it is software. If it
doesn't fix the issue you can try the steps below. (the
software troubleshooter does have some drastic steps that you
may not want to do till you try the steps below to rule out
hardware before doing the drastic steps (i.e.
you may want to do the steps on this page before erasing the
operating system))

Check to see if anything looks burned or charred. You might
have had a power surge. (Surge protectors
are designed to protect the system from this but the system can
still be harmed even with a surge protector installed)

Check to see if the
processor or case fan is spinning. If you have an AGP or PCI
video card with a fan, see if it is spinning. See if the fan
in the power supply is spinning. Also touch the back of the
power supply (where you plug the power
cord in and see if it is hot to touch.(Be
careful, if the power supply is failing, it can be real hot and
can burn you if you are not careful. It should be warm but not
hot. Also do not stick any object into the fan. This can cause
injury.))

Most
power supplies have a red selector switch to switch from 115
volts to 230 volts. It will be near where the power cord goes
in. Unplug the power cord, push the power button to drain the
system, flip the switch to 230 volts and then back to 115.

Leave the system in this configuration. If it still shuts
off, then the issue is with a device that is still on the
system. If the issue you are having is rebooting, removing the
video card may not let you know if the system is rebooting
because you won't have a picture, but if the issue you are
having is shutting off, then you can remove the video card and
see if it turns off.

If it is still turning off, take the last stick of
memory out of the system and see if it shuts off. You should
still have lights and the system should beep. If the issue is
that the system is rebooting, this step will not be necessary
because it won't post if you remove the memory (the
system will probably beep to let you know the memory is missing.
That is ok)

The
processor may need to be reseated. This is very tricky and
should only be done at last resort. Also make sure you know how
to do this step and how to properly reseat it. The
processor or motherboard can easily be damaged. You will
probably have to replace the grease after removing the
processor. If you are not a trained technician, it will be
best handled by one.

If the issue continues with all the above parts removed, the
problem is either power supply,
motherboard, or
processor.

If the problem goes away, then reconnect one item at a time
till either the problem comes back or everything is reconnected.
By reconnecting one at a time, you can figure out which part is
causing the issue. If the problem doesn't come back, the problem
may be that a part needed to be reseated.

If after doing the above steps and the problem goes away when the
hard drive is removed and the diagnostics pass on the hard drive,
you may have a software issue. Be sure to follow the
Software
Troubleshooter.

DISCLAIMER:UpgradeNRepair (UNR), the owner, and any representatives of UpgradeNRepair (UNR)
is not liable for any data loss or hardware failure because of the following
procedure. The Information provided is a guide to assist the customer with
an issue with their system or software. The procedures offered here may or may
not harm your files. Even procedures that are not designed to harm files, can
harm files, depending on the issue with the system. Because there is too many
unknowns, UpgradeNRepair is unable to guarantee the safety of the files.
Customer is responsible for their data and their actions. Before following
the directions on this page and the pages these links are linked to, any data
the customer does not want to lose will have to be saved. Saving the data is
the sole responsibility of the customer. Some or all of the following procedures
or information may not apply to your situation.